Birdfair 2013 - the 'Birdwatcher's Glastonbury'

Known as the ‘birdwatcher’s Glastonbury’ and in 2013 celebrating its 25th anniversary, Birdfair is the UK's main event for birders and wildlife enthusiasts.

Birdfair encompasses all things wildlife, including lectures from eminent speakers, outstanding displays of art in the renowned art marquee, and a vast range of stalls selling everything from binoculars to birding holidays. It is the place to be for anyone with an interest in birds and wildlife.

World Land Trust (WLT) staff were on hand throughout the show to talk to visitors about the Trust's conservation projects all over the world. Birdfair also provided an excellent opportunity for meetings, networking and for simply catching up with old friends.

In 2013 Birdfair focused on birds of the Americas, a theme that is perfectly suited to WLT, which has spent more than 20 years saving land for conservation in Latin America.

Guyra Paraguay was set up in 1997 with the mission to conserve endangered birds in Paraguay, and the word Guyra means ‘bird’ in the language of the indigenous Guaraní people of Paraguay.

In the course of 15 years since then, the Guyra team (including students and volunteers) has surveyed more than 500 different sites and made 150,000 recordings of 1,600 species of vertebrates. Today Paraguay has 57 Important Bird Areas (IBAs), and among the country's highlights are the endangered Hyacinth Macaw (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus), the Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja) and the endangered Crowned Solitary Eagle (Harpyhaliaetus coronatus).

Fundación Pro-Bosque manages the Cerro Blanco Forest Reserve, which was declared Ecuador's second Important Bird Area in 1998. The forest is home to 219 bird species, including eight globally threatened species, among them the Great Green Macaw (Ara ambiguus), which is the symbol of the reserve. Pro-Bosque celebrates 20 years of conservation in 2013.

Once again we were joined by corporate supporter Puro who offered free cups of their fairtrade coffee to visitors.